The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

8 • WATERLOO CHRONICLE • THURSDAY, MAY 11, 2017 WATERLOO CHRONICLE 630 Riverbend Drive, Unit 104 Kitchener, Ontario N2K 3S2 519-579-7166 Fax: 519-579-2029 www.waterloochronicle.ca Donna LUELO PUBLISHER EDITORIAL Bob VRBANAC EDITOR ext. 2305 editorial@waterloochronicle.ca bvrbanac@waterloochronicle.ca Adam JACKSON REPORTER ext. 2308 Twitter: @KWAdamJ ajackson@waterloochronicle.ca Samantha BEATTIE REPORTER ext. 2229 Twitter: @Samantha_KB sambeattie@waterloochronicle.ca ADVERTISING 519-579-7166 Ted ANDERSON, 579-7166 REGIONAL AD MANAGER tanderson@waterloochronicle.ca SALES LEAD Michelle STEVENS, ext. 2232 mstevens@waterloochronicle.ca SALES REPRESENTATIVE Cassandra DELLOW, ext. 2306 cdellow@waterloochronicle.ca SALES REPRESENTATIVE Aaron MURRAY, ext. 2304 amurray@waterloochronicle.ca CLASSIFIED 1-800-263-6480 CIRCULATION 519-894-3000 Canadian Publications Mail Sales Publication Agreement Number 40050478 International Standard Serial Number ASSN 0832-3410 Audited Circulation: 31,292 The Waterloo Chronicle is published each Thursday by Metroland Media Group Ltd. ONTARIO PRESS COUNCIL The Waterloo Chronicle is a member of The Ontario Press Council, which considers complaints against mem- ber newspapers. Any complaint about news, opinions advertising or conduct should first be taken to the newspaper. Unresolved complaints can be brought to: Ontario Press Council, 2 Carlton Street, Suite 1706, Toronto, ON., M5B 1J3. COPYRIGHT The contents of this newspaper are protected by copyright and may be used only for personal non-com- mercial purposes. All other rights are reserved and commercial use is pro- hibited. To make any use of this mate- rial you must first obtain the permis- sion of the owner of the copyright. For further information contact Bob Vrbanac, Managing Editor, Waterloo Chronicle, 630 Riverbend Drive, Suite 104, Kitchener, Ontario N2J 3H8. LETTERS POLICY Letters to the editor must contain the writer's full name, address and tele- phone number. Addresses and tele- phone numbers are used only for veri- fication purposes. Names will not be withheld. We reserve the right to edit, condense or reject any contribution for brevity or legal purposes. Letters may be submitted by email to editorial@water- loochronicle.ca. Suburban Newspapers of America VIEWPOINT WATERLOO CHRONICLE CHRONICLE EDITORIAL There are quite a few characters you bump into around the arenas and sports fields of Waterloo, but you don't forget a guy like Greg Walton. "Hiya, Bob," was the way he always drawled his greet- ing to me whether I was cov- ering a Waterloo Siskins game or watching the Golden Hawks play at University Stadium. "� e boys have a tough one today," he'd say, as he started talking about what the team had to do to win. He always had a clipboard in hand and would keep track of the shots and other stats. He was a fixture at every game and was part of the local sports scene for more than 50 years. In spite of his challenges, everyone loved Greg and his gentle ways and adopted him as an honourary part of the team. He even got a Vanier Cup championship ring personally delivered to him by head coach Gary Je� ries. When any of the players passed by him, they'd say, "Hey coach." The coaching staffs always made time for Greg all the way down from local coaching leg- ends Tuffy Knight and Rich Newborough to Gerry Harrigan with the Siskins. No matter how gruff the guy, they always had time for a member of their fraternity. His sister Fran, a retired nun who gave up her teaching career to take care of Greg after her parents passed away, once told me Greg was a normal boy up until the age of 13 when a severe case of meningitis left him with the slightly slurred speech and some unfortunate brain damage. But that didn't stop his dad Fred, who coached the Water- loo Tigers baseball team back in the 1950s, from bringing his son around and encouraging him to help in his own way. And help in his own way Greg did until the last few years when he started to slow down and su� er from ailments of age. That didn't stop him from telling me that the teams were still trying to get him back into coaching, and he was always looking to sign his next unof- � cial contract. Greg also used to regale you with his floor hockey playing exploits once telling me that he surpassed the 1,000 goal mark. He was the "Great One" in local gymnasiums. Everyone had a story to tell you about Greg. Mine always involved Sunday night hockey games after I had � nished my interviews with the Siskins. Greg would be out in the hall- way waiting for the next volun- teer to give him a ride home. On more than one occasion that volunteer would be me as we loaded up the sticks he'd add to his hockey stick collec- tion. He would always share a few more thoughts about the game on his way home. Greg passed away at the age of 75 last Friday, and we're all poorer for the loss. He repre- sented the best of Waterloo. Sharing one more story about Greg The last thing that someone overdosing needs is the peo-ple around them wondering whether they should call 911 because they might get arrested for simple posses- sion. Seconds save lives and those people turning blue, as an opioid like fentanyl works its way through their system stop- ping the most basic of brain functions like breathing, don't have the time to wait. They need help from becoming one of the 20 people locally who have died from overdoses in the region since January. In total there have been 158 overdoses in the region since January, and in most cases were dependent on somebody call- ing for help to save them or applying the antidote Naloxone. Michael Parkinson from the Waterloo Region Crime Preven- tion Council said during an opioid crisis immediate assistance is critical and people have to remember the victim often can't help themselves. Th ankfully, those who are trying to do their best to stem the growing public health crisis got another tool to use last week when the House of Commons passed the Good Samaritan Overdose Act. It gives those who witness an overdose and call 911 immu- nity from simple drug possession charges. People who are on probation and have a court order not to be around drugs will also not be in breach if they seek out help. Those who don't believe in the harm reduction model or think that this condones the use of illegal drugs can argue semantics, but fear shouldn't get in the way of saving lives. We already know that drug users are taking risks when they engage in taking unknown substances, but it shouldn't be com- pounded by removing the instinct we all have to help people in need. Instead of people not wanting to get involved this will give them legal protections if they do. It just might save a life or two. Support the Samaritans BOBBY'S WORLD BOB VRBANAC